


A Good Night

by WotanAnubis



Category: Vikings (TV)
Genre: But apart from that they're fine, F/F, Werewolves, everybody's dead
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-01
Updated: 2016-12-01
Packaged: 2018-09-03 15:22:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,648
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8718940
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WotanAnubis/pseuds/WotanAnubis
Summary: In which Lagertha and Astrid are reunited under peculiar circumstances.





	

**Author's Note:**

> I suppose you could say this fic is a premature reaction to the fact that Astrid is a queer lady on a TV show in 2016.

Lagertha stared gloomily at her mead. Around her was the roar of humanity as hundreds, thousands, of men and women feasted to their heart's content. Here songs were sung, there a drunken brawl. Food and drink filled the endless tables, practically urging everyone to have the very best time they could have.

But Lagertha just wasn't in the mood. The food was excellent and so was the mead, but she couldn't enjoy them. The company was all wrong.

She'd tried talking to Ragnar, but that hadn't worked out. He was in one of his moods again. He missed Athelstan. So did she, of course, but she didn't let it overwhelm her quite the same as it overwhelmed him. And Gyda... Gyda rarely joined the feasts.

Not that it would have made any difference. Her own heart, too, ached with yearning and neither Ragnar nor Gyda could help her.

"Lagertha?"

Lagertha looked up. She'd been adressed by a very tall woman. She was impossible pale, her long hair was white and her icy blue eyes held an expression of permanent disdain.

"Yes?" Lagertha said. "Do I know you?"

"Of course you do," the woman replied. "Now then, would you like to see Astrid again?"

Lagertha jumped from her seat. "Astrid's here? Why haven't I seen her?"

"She's not allowed here, she's outside," said the woman.

"Not allowed?" Lagertha said. "That can't be true. She was-"

"Do you want to see her?" the pale woman insisted.

"Yes," Lagertha said, slightly taken aback. "Yes, of course. But why-?"

"Follow me."

The pale woman turned around and made her way through the massive throng. Nobody seemed to notice her, yet somehow everybody moved aside for her.

They didn't move aside for Lagertha. She had to push and shove and struggle to keep up with the woman striding ahead. More than once the press of bodies obscured the stranger from view, but Lagertha pressed on regardless. She hadn't seen Astrid ever since- well, she hadn't seen her in far too long and nobody was going to stand in her way.

Finally Lagertha stumbled out of the heat and light of the Hall into the cold darkness outside. The aurora shimmered overhead in the night sky, casting its dreamlike glow onto the snow.

"Lagertha."

Lagertha looked around and there she was. Astrid. Standing with one hand on her hips, her short hair unkempt, smiling vaguely. As though nothing had ever happened. As though she'd seen her only yesterday.

Lagertha didn't bother with greetings. She rushed into her arms, embraced her and kissed her. The aches and longings that had filled her heart drained away into nothingness while Astrid's lips touched her own.

"It's been too long," Lagertha said, resting her forehead against Astrid's.

"I'm sorry," Astrid replied.

"You're here now," Lagertha said. "That's all that matters."

Astrid smiled, a little sadly. Then, "Do you feel like hunting?"

"What?" Lagertha chuckled. "No. I want nothing but to be here with you now."

"As do I," Astrid said. "But I had to make a few promises to get all this arranged, so... we have to hunt."

"Well, if you say so," Lagertha said reluctantly. "And where should we hunt?"

"Just over there."

Astrid gestured towards an ancient forest, its massive trees bent with age and their bare branches weighed down with snow. It hadn't been there a moment ago.

"Here," said Astrid as she handed Lagertha a bow and a quiver full of arrows.

"I only see one bow here," Lagertha said.

"That's right," said Astrid. "I have my own weapons. There's one deer over in that forest."

"And two of us," Lagertha said. "Is this to be a competition?"

"More or less," said Astrid. "But one without winners and losers. Get going. I'll give you a head start."

Lagertha reluctantly stepped away. She'd been challenged and apparently this was a challenge she couldn't refuse. But even so, it seemed to take all her willpower to take even step away from Astrid. To be separated from her already seemed too cruel.

Lagertha turned around sharply. She'd hoped that not seeing Astrid's face would make walking away from her easier somehow. It didn't. She walked forward with leaden feet for another two or three paces, then forced herself to run. Within moments the forest swallowed her.

Trees everywhere, in every direction. Looking back, Lagertha couldn't even see the Hall any more even though she really should. She hadn't gone _that_ far yet. But this wasn't an ordinary forest. Distance probably didn't mean much around here.

Lagertha made her way through the dark trees, her path lit only by the ever-shifting light of the aurora. The ground was uneven, thick roots were everywhere. She should've stumbled at least once, but didn't. This was not a forest for people to stumble around blindly in.

Before long she came across the deer. It was a beautiful animal, sleek and elegant. It stood quite calmly, drinking from a brook.

Lagertha held her breath. Moving slow as a glacier, trying not to make a single sound, she took a single arrow and nocked it. She raised her bow, took careful aim.

The dear looked up, its ears twitching. Lagertha stood still as a statue. The animal looked around wildly, then jumped away and disappeared into the forest. Lagertha was about to sigh in frustration when a large, black wolf crashed through the brush and landed near the brook.

Lagertha froze in shock. There was supposed to be just one deer. Astrid had said so! So why this wolf? Why was it here?

The wolf stalked to the brook. It looked around, no doubt searching for its escaped prey. For a brief moment, it looked at Lagertha. Its eyes were a familiar blue. Then it turned and was gone.

Lagertha shook herself. She had no idea what was going on (although, somewhere in the back of her mind, some suspicions were starting to take root), but she wasn't about to let that stop her. She could just run after the wolf. It was probably after the deer, after all. But that didn't make much sense. She'd be a woman chasing a wolf chasing a deer and that was not the kind of chase she'd win.

Now then. The wolf had come from her right, the deer had fled to her left. Perhaps...

Lagertha ran through the dark trees. She'd taken a risk, but since it was the only thing that might work it was one she'd had to take. To her right, she thought she heard the wolf racing through the bracken, crushing twigs and leaves under its paws.

And then it ran past her. The deer, with the black wolf close behind. Lagertha didn't have time to aim carefully, so she didn't. She raised her bow and let the arrow fly. It hit the deer in the flank. The animal collapsed and the wolf...

The wolf didn't pounce. Instead it slowed down and padded over to the fallen deer. Lagertha walked to the animals. Or, to be more precise, the one animal and the one carcass. One arrow in the flank shouldn't have killed the deer. Or at least, not this quickly. But that kind of thinking didn't work here.

The wolf looked at Lagertha and this time she recognized its eyes.

Lagertha lowered her bow and arrows. "I'll go get some firewood."

She took her time. She didn't have to. There was more than enough wood to go around. But she felt unsettled. There were questions she had to ask and answers she had to get and they were question she didn't want to ask and answers she didn't want to hear.

After taking much longer than she should have, Lagertha returned to the place where she'd shot the deer. The deer had gone. So had the wolf. Instead, Astrid sat on ground, covered in a large and heavy fur blanket.

"Well, I was going to make a fire, but..."

Astrid smiled. "This blanket's more than big enough for the two of us. Warm enough, too."

Lagertha dropped her wood and slipped in next to Astrid. For a moment she allowed herself to revel in their familiar closeness. Allowed herself to simply enjoy her touch and warmth.

"So you're a werewolf," Lagertha said.

"Yes," Astrid replied.

"Have you been one all along?" Lagertha asked.

Astrid chuckled. "No, of course not. But, let us say, I've never really been sworn to Odin."

"So that's why I didn't see you again," said Lagertha.

"That's why," said Astrid. "Can you forgive me?"

"Can I see you again after this?" Lagertha asked.

"Yes."

"Then I think I can forgive you."

Astrid kissed Lagertha's neck. "Thank you."

Lagertha sighed. "And here I was thinking the worst was over. At least until Ragnarok."

Lagertha looked up. Here she was, wrapped in a fur blanket, completely alone with Astrid in a dark forest. No feast set out before her, no warriors boasting of their grand achievements, no skalds playing music. Only silence and Astrid.

It was perfect.

Lagertha stroked Astrid's hair, quietly caressing her with her fingertips. Part of her wished it was longer so that she'd have more to stroke. But then, Astrid had always looked better with short hair.

"How long will this last?" she asked.

"Until sunrise," said Astrid.

"And then we must part?"

"You to your Hall and I to mine. That's just how it is."

"Can't I join you?" Lagertha asked.

Lagertha could feel Astrid tense up.

"Please don't ask," Astrid said.

"I take it the answer is 'no'," said Lagertha.

"Worse than that," said Astrid.

"So I can join you," said Lagertha. "But... but I'd have to leave everyone else behind."

"Let's not dwell on that," said Astrid. "We have tonight. And perhaps more than tonight. Isn't that enough?"

"We do have tonight," said Lagertha, and kissed her.

"But that's not enough."


End file.
